Priests of the Consuming Fire

Regardless of what you might feel or believe about the word “religion”, it has a place as a definition of the life of a disciple of Jesus. People may not like it, but it remains a reality. The Christian Scriptures refer to disciples of Jesus as priests. And priests practice religion. That is their primary function. Their entire role, perhaps life, is bound up in the practice of religion. And for disciples of Jesus, this is true as well.

Therefore, since we receive a kingdom which cannot be shaken, let us show gratitude, by which we may offer to God an acceptable service with reverence and awe; for our God is a consuming fire.

Hebrews 12:28-29 NASB

The word for “service” above is a Greek word typically referring to a “hired hand” or even, in some cases, “enslaved”. The translators of the Septuagint used it for service to God (or other god), almost exclusively. and in the Christian Scriptures, it’s never used otherwise. Here, the writer of Hebrews combines it with “reverence and awe”, making the meaning unmistakable.

One of the dangers of only seeing our life with our Savior as a “relationship” is that we run the risk of missing His superiority. He is our Savior, but He is also our Creator, and not just of people, but the this vast, unimaginable universe. The writer was serious, dead serious, about serving our Savior with reverence and awe.

We think of Jesus as “love”. That makes us feel good because we don’t really understand love. I know that’s true because we get a warm fuzzy comfortable feeling from God being love, but not from God being a “consuming fire”. Suddenly we’re overly hot, on fire, about to die.

We need to strike a balance in our relationship with our Creator. We, as disciples of Jesus, must take Him more seriously than we do. The choice of the word for “service”, brings with it a life dedicated to working for God. For the Greeks, it can have religious significance, but it typically referred to working for someone. We think of our work-life as separate from our religious-life. That’s not how our Creator inspired Scripture to be written.

One of the more familiar passages speaking to service to God is Romans 12:1,2:

Therefore I urge you, brethren, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service of worship. And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect.

Romans 12:1-2 NASB (emphasis mine)

In this passage, “service” is a noun, but the noun version of verb used in Hebrews 12:28. In other words, it’s the same thing said differently. The point for Paul in this passage is that our lives are to be completely dedicated to this life of service to our Savior. Which is very close to the meaning for Nicodemus, our writer of Hebrews.

Nicodemus provides a terrifying reason, missing in Paul’s call to service. “Our God is a consuming fire.” Do you think of Him that way? Do you consider that your seriousness in service is due to Him being a consuming fire? Our Creator is also our Savior, and He is love. But He is also a consuming fire! Think about that for a moment. That, logically, means that love is a consuming fire.

There is so much we miss in our life with our Savior. We do not pay enough attention to Scripture, and miss so much of what our Creator reveals about Himself to us. We have to fight our tendency to focus only on what we like about our Savior, and miss what He shows us about Himself. We need a more complete view of our Savior. We need to receive all of Him revealed in His Scripture.

This means that we need to spend more time in study of Scripture, something we tend to spend the least amount of time during the day. We also need the varied perspectives of our fellow disciples. Our Creator doesn’t reveal Himself fully to each person, but contextualizes Himself to His creatures. Jesus never healed the same way twice. The Holy Spirit doesn’t “fall upon” His people the same way, and there are different effects each time. Paul doesn’t write the same thing to every church, because they don’t all have the same people nor the same problems.

Let’s remember the seriousness of our religious relationship with our Creator. Let us live reverently and in awe of our Savior. Let’s keep in mind that the One before whom we live is a consuming fire. This isn’t an opportunity for roasting marshmallows, this is the fiery furnace with an extra Person in it. Let’s sober up and get busy.

Scripture quotations taken from the NASB. Copyright by The Lockman Foundation

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Revisiting the Shake

Sometimes, when I write in the mornings, I am not able to sit and write without interruption. On weekends, it’s easier. So, this morning, I’m going to revisit my previous post. Not that my Master couldn’t use it in someone’s life, He can use anything. In fact, He can use nothing and still be effective. I simply need to pull something out of my noggin that’s been reverberating around in all that open space.

What does it mean that God will shake the heavens, the earth, the sea, and the wilderness?

The writer of Hebrews, Nicodemus, as I’ve been calling him, moves from the encouraging contrast between God in heaven, and God as He revealed Himself at Sinai, to prodding his audience to obey out of fear. Verses 25 through 29 of Hebrews 12 are nothing short of a threat. That may seem like an extreme way to put it, but it’s clearly a “stick” not a “carrot”. They want to be part of the unshakable kingdom, not the one to be destroyed by shaking.

They are saved from destruction by obedience, not refusing the voice of God. The implication is that they are trending toward rejecting or refusing the voice of God, and the writer is trying to reverse that trend. The entire book has been focused at precisely that goal, reversing the trend away from God. And yet, this is a strange way to pull their attention back on track. Quoting this passage in Haggai is a strange choice, especially at this point. As intentional as Nicodemus has been so far, this has to be intentional.

What did it mean for Haggai that God will shake the heavens, the earth, the sea and the wilderness?

On the twenty-first of the seventh month, the word of the LORD came by Haggai the prophet saying, “Speak now to Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel, governor of Judah, and to Joshua the son of Jehozadak, the high priest, and to the remnant of the people saying, ‘Who is left among you who saw this temple in its former glory? And how do you see it now? Does it not seem to you like nothing in comparison? But now take courage, Zerubbabel,’ declares the LORD, ‘take courage also, Joshua son of Jehozadak, the high priest, and all you people of the land take courage,’ declares the LORD, ‘and work; for I am with you,’ declares the LORD of hosts. ‘As for the promise which I made you when you came out of Egypt, My Spirit is abiding in your midst; do not fear!’ For thus says the LORD of hosts, ‘Once more in a little while, I am going to shake the heavens and the earth, the sea also and the dry land. I will shake all the nations; and they will come with the wealth of all nations, and I will fill this house with glory,’ says the LORD of hosts. ‘The silver is Mine and the gold is Mine,’ declares the LORD of hosts. ‘The latter glory of this house will be greater than the former,’ says the LORD of hosts, ‘and in this place I will give peace,’ declares the LORD of hosts.”

Haggai 2:1-9 NASB

This is the entire context of the quote (or reference) in Haggai. It may be familiar to you from the claim of the future glory of the temple, or you may have heard the quote, “the silver is Mine and the gold in Mine”, usually used completely out of context. But the entirety of this passage you have probably not heard. It hasn’t truly been fulfilled, not completely, at least not yet. Herod the Great tried, and the temple in Jerusalem that he built was impressive. But it wasn’t Solomon’s Temple, with the gold hammered into the walls and so on.

Nicodemus is probably pointing to the “Temple” in heaven as the fulfillment, although it existed before the building in Jerusalem. Even so, his use of the “shaking” seems disconnected from what Haggai had in mind. Haggai seems to have in mind “shaking out a bag of coins.” Look at the result, “I will shake all the nations; and they will come with the wealth of all nations,” that is about money, and the splendor it can enable. Clearly the shaking results in wealth coming to Jerusalem to make the temple beautiful again.

So, when God shakes the heavens, the earth, the sea, and the desert, He is not destroying as much as “rearranging” them, or “re-appropriating” their wealth to His temple in Jerusalem. For Haggai, the fulfillment happens in the Jerusalem in which he lived. For Haggai, the “shaking” is something that Yahweh does to the Gentiles to bless the Jews. Yet, the wealth doesn’t show, the shaking doesn’t seem to happen like Haggai says. Or does it?

A case can be made that return of the Jews to Jerusalem under Cyrus did, in fact, bring with it the wealth of the nations. The items of the temple were returned, and wealth besides. While the temple wasn’t what they had remembered, it hadn’t been what it was when Solomon built it for over a hundred years before Nebuchadnezzar destroyed it in 586 BC. It had been plundered several times prior to the final destruction.

So, the shaking out the wealth of the Gentiles to bring it to Jerusalem is clearly not what Nicodemus had in view. What does he have in view?

What did it mean for the writer of Hebrews that God will shake heaven and earth?

See to it that you do not refuse Him who is speaking. For if those did not escape when they refused him who warned them on earth, much less will we escape who turn away from Him who warns from heaven. And His voice shook the earth then, but now He has promised, saying, “YET ONCE MORE I WILL SHAKE NOT ONLY THE EARTH, BUT ALSO THE HEAVEN.” This expression, “Yet once more,” denotes the removing of those things which can be shaken, as of created things, so that those things which cannot be shaken may remain. Therefore, since we receive a kingdom which cannot be shaken, let us show gratitude, by which we may offer to God an acceptable service with reverence and awe; for our God is a consuming fire.

Hebrews 12:25-29 NASB

The warning is an application from the comparison of Sinai and heaven, and is clear: Don’t be like those guys! Don’t refuse your Savior! If the Creator of the entire cosmos cares enough to speak with you, listen! It is dangerous not to. If the ones who heard Him at Sinai died before reaching the land because of their disobedience, then how will they (or we) escape Him? Why would they (or we) think they (or we) would be spared? That is essentially the point here for Nicodemus.

He pivots from applying the comparison to shaking. The word that Nicodemus chose to use for “shake” initially is different than “shake” used in the quote from Haggai, even though in English they’re the same. Nicodemus uses a word for shake that can have disastrous consequences (Acts 16:26), or refer to something shaken together to mix it (Luke 6:38).

Perhaps the best use can be found in the “Little Apocalypse” of Jesus (Matt. 24:29, Mark 13:25, Luke 21:26), where the “heavens will be shaken”. This is very likely what Nicodemus is drawing from in his use. But why quote Haggai? Nicodemus seems to have something very different in view than Haggai. While an end-of-all-things is clearly where Nicodemus is going, Haggai is pointing to a restoration-of-all-things. So, where’s the connection?

What it means for us that God will shake the heavens and the earth

The journey we are on while sojourning on this world may not be fun, but the final destination makes it all worth while. The day is coming when what we see will be completely remade, and we will know the life in the Garden we started with. That is the point. The new temple will be of greater splendor than Solomon’s because it will be the heavenly temple. The shaking of the world will dump from the nations all the rebellion against the Creator, and what is left will be holy and wholly His. There will be a “new heaven and new earth”:

Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth; for the first heaven and the first earth passed away, and there is no longer any sea. And I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, made ready as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from the throne, saying, “Behold, the tabernacle of God is among men, and He will dwell among them, and they shall be His people, and God Himself will be among them, and He will wipe away every tear from their eyes; and there will no longer be any death; there will no longer be any mourning, or crying, or pain; the first things have passed away.”

Revelation 21:1-4 NASB

That’s the result of the shaking. It will be the end of this world, and the beginning of the next. It will be when “tabernacle of God is among men”. The destination is what gives the journey meaning and purpose. What enables enduring this crazy world? Sure the Spirit of Jesus enables us, and He gives us purpose here and now. I don’t want to take away from that.

So, when it gets tough, and the purpose of our Savior for us includes pain, suffering, anguish, and loss, what makes it worth it? You see, the Spirit uses the promise of eternity to help us endure. He Himself is the guarantee of heaven. The destination makes the journey worth the effort, the pain, the frustration, and the suffering.

I think that’s a better treatment of “shaking” than the previous entry. Sorry it’s so long though. Thanks for pushing through to the end.

Scripture quotations taken from the NASB. Copyright by The Lockman Foundation

Shaking Things Up

I was born and raised in Southern California, so earthquakes were are part of life, sometimes an exciting part. I was never hurt, never in a building that was damaged, I was never that close to dangerous ones. But, on the third floor of a cinder block dormitory, feeling the outer wall I was leaning against sway…well, that was creepy.

I was able to accept earthquakes as something that happens, and knew what to do. Even so, there is still something that rocks you to your core to have the earth on which you walk, move. Your mind simply finds it difficult to accept that the “unmovable” just did. I believe that is true, to some extent, regardless of how many earthquakes a person has been through.

The writer of Hebrews refers to God shaking the earth and heaven quoting Haggai:

See to it that you do not refuse Him who is speaking. For if those did not escape when they refused him who warned them on earth, much less will we escape who turn away from Him who warns from heaven. And His voice shook the earth then, but now He has promised, saying, “YET ONCE MORE I WILL SHAKE NOT ONLY THE EARTH, BUT ALSO THE HEAVEN.” This expression, “Yet once more,” denotes the removing of those things which can be shaken, as of created things, so that those things which cannot be shaken may remain.

Hebrews 12:25-27 NASB

Comparing the presence of God in heaven with His appearance at Sinai was to be encouraging. But the call to remain faithful continues with this warning. The reference to His voice shaking the earth “then” is probably Sinai (Exodus 19:18), but the passage in Haggai 2:6 isn’t a reference to Sinai. The reference in Haggai is part of the passage below:

On the twenty-first of the seventh month, the word of the LORD came by Haggai the prophet saying, “Speak now to Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel, governor of Judah, and to Joshua the son of Jehozadak, the high priest, and to the remnant of the people saying, ‘Who is left among you who saw this temple in its former glory? And how do you see it now? Does it not seem to you like nothing in comparison? But now take courage, Zerubbabel,’ declares the LORD, ‘take courage also, Joshua son of Jehozadak, the high priest, and all you people of the land take courage,’ declares the LORD, ‘and work; for I am with you,’ declares the LORD of hosts. ‘As for the promise which I made you when you came out of Egypt, My Spirit is abiding in your midst; do not fear!’ For thus says the LORD of hosts, ‘Once more in a little while, I am going to shake the heavens and the earth, the sea also and the dry land. I will shake all the nations; and they will come with the wealth of all nations, and I will fill this house with glory,’ says the LORD of hosts. ‘The silver is Mine and the gold is Mine,’ declares the LORD of hosts. ‘The latter glory of this house will be greater than the former,’ says the LORD of hosts, ‘and in this place I will give peace,’ declares the LORD of hosts.”

Haggai 2:1-9 NASB (Emphasis mine)

This is the translation from Hebrew, and the text in Greek (Septuagint) is only slightly different than the Hebrew. So the Greek text of Haggai doesn’t really fit the quote in Hebrews either (at least not the edition of the Septuagint I have access to). Which leaves us wondering to what the writer is truly referring.

Haggai is writing to encourage the people witnessing the second temple in Jerusalem who remembered the Temple Solomon had built. The second temple was not as magnificent as the first, but God promises that “the latter glory of this house will be greater than the former.” From the context in Haggai, it also seems that “glory” means “wealth” or the beauty enhanced by gold and silver. This isn’t the point of the writer of Hebrews.

The writer of Hebrews is pointing out a more “end-times” perspective. The point he makes is that the shaking of the heavens and the earth will destroy the “created things”, leaving the “things that cannot be shaken”. He is pushing his audience to focus on the “unshakable” kingdom he has described as the Heavenly Temple. The second temple of Jerusalem was never again as splendid as Solomon’s. But the Heavenly Temple may be considered as never being as plain as Solomon’s either.

We have something indestructible to look forward to. This is another encouragement to focus on the sure promise of God through Jesus: promise of unlimited access to our Creator, promise of forgiveness from all unholiness, promise of an eternal city where our Savior intercedes for us. It’s another push to endure because this is not all there is, and what is to come is unimaginably superior to what has been.

So, if this world, this country, or even your community has shaken you up, consider the unshakable kingdom of our Savior, and press on. Press on in your love for others. Press on in your faith in your Creator and Savior. Press on in your hope of an eternal unshakable city. Press on.

Scripture quotations taken from the NASB. Copyright by The Lockman Foundation

When It’s Not Fair

One of my pet peeves is when things aren’t fair. It’s actually funny how fast that gets me going. Even in a computer game. I play an online game that I believe has “balancing” issues, pairing me against players I have no chance with, and dropping me into the game in the worst possible place. I get frustrated for a while, and then I remember that they let me play for free, but to win all the time, I would need to spend money. The imbalance is a design “feature”.

But life, the big things in life, sweeping events of history, social and cultural trends, and opportunities, we tend to believe those should be fair. That may be a classic “Americanism”, honestly. I can claim that, about myself, perhaps. Although, I suspect that other cultures without that sense of “fairness” have lost it due to cynicism, they’ve lost hope.

The reason I suspect this is because of the concept, at least in Western thought, of justice. The statue is a woman, she’s blindfolded, holds an unsheathed sword in one hand and a pair of scales in the other. The ideas embodied in that image are compassion, a refusal to judge by what is seen on the surface, execution of judgement and equality. The blindfold was added later it seems, but the other elements have been around since the Ancient Greeks.

We have reached a point when one of the common lessons we pass on is that “life isn’t fair.” But think about that. Why do we need to teach that? Why is that expectation so deeply ingrained, it’s instinctive. Life is supposed to be fair, and it isn’t. The removal (or suppression) of that instinctive expectation leaves us with this blank, a cipher, a vacuum in our soul abhorred by our human nature.

The question for us all is, “How will we respond to the unfairness of this life?” Will we stop and complain, for a very long time? Will we stuff those feelings, and “soldier on”? Will we weep for what is lost, and seek that which is missing? I believe it’s fair to say that everyone chooses one of those three options, however they define the option or describe the outcome or benefit.

As disciples of Jesus, how are we to respond to the unfairness of this life? Well, consider Jesus, as Paul did, in Philippians 2:5-11.

Have this attitude in yourselves which was also in Christ Jesus, who, although He existed in the form of God, did not regard equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied Himself, taking the form of a bond-servant, and being made in the likeness of men. Being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. For this reason also, God highly exalted Him, and bestowed on Him the name which is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus EVERY KNEE WILL BOW, of those who are in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and that every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

Philippians 2:5-11 (NASB)

Was it fair that Jesus emptied Himself? Was it fair that the Divine took the form of a slave, being made in the likeness of the creature, though He is the Creator? Was it fair that He humbled Himself becoming obedient to the extreme of death by crucifixion? Was that fair? No. And the sheer unimaginable magnitude of the Divine Creator choosing to endure all of that offsets overwhelmingly the scales of justice. Now it’s unfair, but in our favor.

Really? It doesn’t feel that way when I get up in the morning. It doesn’t feel that way when I watch the news. It doesn’t feel that way when I talk to my family and friends enduring stress. It doesn’t feel as if the scales of justice and fairness have been tipped in my favor. It feels like the opposite, like I’m being oppressed, spiritually and emotionally, if not physically. But the truth is, I’m not being oppressed, in any way.

So, what do we, as disciples of our Divine Savior, do in response to the apparent inequality of this life? The answer found in Scripture, inspired by our Creator who saves us, is this: Hope in Heaven.

For you have not come to a mountain that can be touched and to a blazing fire, and to darkness and gloom and whirlwind, and to the blast of a trumpet and the sound of words which sound was such that those who heard begged that no further word be spoken to them. For they could not bear the command, “IF EVEN A BEAST TOUCHES THE MOUNTAIN, IT WILL BE STONED.” And so terrible was the sight, that Moses said, “I AM FULL OF FEAR and trembling.”

But you have come to Mount Zion and to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to myriads of angels, to the general assembly and church of the firstborn who are enrolled in heaven, and to God, the Judge of all, and to the spirits of the righteous made perfect, and to Jesus, the mediator of a new covenant, and to the sprinkled blood, which speaks better than the blood of Abel.

Hebrews 12:18-24 (NASB)

Do you see the contrast? The world, those outside the kingdom of Jesus, they see the first part, the blazing fire, the whirlwind, the darkness and gloom. It’s still our Creator, but it’s frightening, terrifying in fact. And it is true, He is all of that, and more.

We see the holy city and temple described in the next. We hope in the city with angels the assembly of those called out first, those perfected, and, best of all, our Creator, Savior, and Judge. Our Mediator, the One interceding for us is right there! That is what we hope in, that is why we can endure this life full of inequality, injustice, pain, and death. Those are the hallmarks of the devil, but the hallmarks of our Savior is abundant eternal life (John 10:10).

We, as disciples of Jesus, are to see things differently, act differently, speak differently. But this isn’t just about ourselves. If we see things from the perspective of our Creator, then we are to call out the works of the devil for what they are. We are to be different, and we are not to tolerate evil in silence. We are to speak out as our Savior spoke out while He walked this earth, loving Samaritans, honoring women, and blessing Gentiles. He wasn’t the typical Jewish male. Nor are we to be the typical human where we are.

What can you do in your community to push back against the darkness of the devil’s kingdom with the light of the abundant life of Jesus within you? Do that.

So, Now What?

One of the things about criticism, especially accurate criticism, that determines the quality of it, is encouragement. That may sound peculiar, but I’m not sure how else to put it. Encouragement following criticism, or as part of it, helps frame the mind around a positive purpose. That is, perhaps, the most important ingredient to criticism, a positive purpose. Cynicism is not true criticism.

The writer of Hebrews doesn’t just tell his audience to, “buck up and take it with a smile.” He explains that difficulties are proof that we are legitimate children (12:8). Which is great, but who wants to be children of suffering? And, let’s say I do accept the challenge to “suffer with a smile” (which he never says to do), what do I do during the suffering? Well, it’s like an airline emergency response:

1. Put on your own “mask” to protect yourself:

Therefore, strengthen the hands that are weak and the knees that are feeble, and make straight paths for your feet, so that the limb which is lame may not be put out of joint, but rather be healed.

Hebrews 12:12-13 NASB

At first, it may sound like the writer is asking his audience to take care of those “other” weak ones, but as he continues, it becomes clear he’s speaking of taking care of themselves. The verb, to strengthen (or rebuild, look it up here), is an active imperative, which can imply helping another, or transitive action. It’s the following statement about “paths for your feet” that make clear the writer is referring to helping themselves.

And this is necessary for us. If we neglect this step, we are in danger of being a plank-eyed minister to others, and that is no help at all. Not that we have to be perfect before helping others, but we do need to exercise to be able to avoid the impairments that prevent us from being useful to others.

For instance, I don’t help others with areas I know I’m already in danger of failing. Why set myself up for failure? And there are areas I struggle, and probably will for the rest of my life. On the other hand, having had some success with other areas of my walk with my Master, I can be of service to others helping them succeed as well.

Basically, I need help in some areas, and can help in others. One way we strengthen those impaired limbs is to recognize, and deal wisely, with our weaknesses (brag in them, as Paul says). Only then can we help others is areas our Savior has made us strong (gifted us?).

2. Help others with their “mask”

Pursue peace with all men, and the sanctification without which no one will see the Lord. See to it that no one comes short of the grace of God; that no root of bitterness springing up causes trouble, and by it many be defiled; that there be no immoral or godless person like Esau, who sold his own birthright for a single meal. For you know that even afterwards, when he desired to inherit the blessing, he was rejected, for he found no place for repentance, though he sought for it with tears.

Hebrews 12:14-17 NASB

Service is a foundational discipline of a disciple of Jesus. If we are not of service to others, then we squander the gift given us by our Creator and Savior. We endanger our walk with the One who loves us passionately, enough to suffer agonizing death on our behalf, in our place. We must give back what our Master pours into our lives. He does so for the specific purpose of using us in His Kingdom.

The writer lists it this way:

1. “Pursue” peace with all men/people
2. “Pursue” sanctification (the process of being “set apart” for our Creator)
3. “Oversee” that no one fall short of our Creator’s grace
4. “Oversee” that no root of bitterness springs up, defiling many
5. “Oversee” that there be no “immoral” or “godless” person among us

What sometimes happens is that people will skip the first one, and dive into the “overseeing” part. I numbered it on purpose. Do number one first, then 2, and so on. And notice that “sanctification” is a process pursued in the context of a group. It’s not solely personal.

When a “body” of disciples is characterized by these 5 activities, then they will be, as a group, moving toward the throne of Jesus. But they will be suffering as they go, being disciplined by our Father as beloved children. Yet, even so, they will be driving on toward the curtain to the Most Holy Place, to finally reach the foot of their Savior and Intercessor, Jesus. Can you imagine a better pursuit?

So, let us put down the torches and pitchforks, leave off storming the castle of our neighboring church, and practice the love for our fellow disciples that was shown to us by our fellow Savior. How about we give that a shot? That root of bitterness should be weeded, it’s not a garden plant, trust me. Or, trust Nicodemus, the writer of Hebrews.

In Retrospect

It gets said a lot, but it’s true: Things make more sense after the fact, looking back, in retrospect. Sometimes, the context of the whole event span of time enables understanding of the event with more clarity. I wish that were always true, but sometimes, things will not make sense before we stand in the presence of our Creator in heaven.

I play an online video game that arranges two teams in competition. I believe it really struggles to fairly balance teams, and members it puts into contests. But I also believe that is a “feature” not a “flaw”, at least from the designers perspective. I’m pretty sure that they count on players getting frustrated loosing and opting to spend money on the game to improve their competitive abilities.

Until I remember that, I can get very frustrated. But, eventually, I get it, I remember that it’s a game, that this is supposed to be somewhat unbalanced. But something inside me still cries “That’s not fair!” And it isn’t. But it’s not supposed to be either.

Being disciplined can be like that too. Often, we don’t see what’s happening as “beneficial” except in retrospect. And this isn’t just true for our relationship with our Savior either. Think about how brilliant your parents become the older you get. So, we should not be surprised when we discover, in retrospect, the wisdom of our Savior in His treatment of us. The first-century disciples of Jesus struggled with this very thing, and here’s how the writer of Hebrews addressed it:

Furthermore, we had earthly fathers to discipline us, and we respected them; shall we not much rather be subject to the Father of spirits, and live? For they disciplined us for a short time as seemed best to them, but He disciplines us for our good, so that we may share His holiness. All discipline for the moment seems not to be joyful, but sorrowful; yet to those who have been trained by it, afterwards it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness.

Hebrews 12:9-11 NASB (Emphasis mine)

In retrospect, it often makes sense. A lot of the time, looking back, the context of the entirety (or as much of it as we can see) gives meaning to what our Savior does. Is it a “universal truth”? No, unfortunately not. We don’t have the full context yet, and even then, we may not really understand everything. But this we can be sure of, our Creator, our Father in heaven, disciplines us for our good, so that we may share in His holiness.

Knowing that may not make it easier to endure. Being told to just wait it out, endure to the end, may not ease the pain any. It probably makes it more painful. We want to see the light at the end of the tunnel and know it’s not a train. Sometimes, it is a train. But as we are “run over” by that train, remember this:

But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, so that the surpassing greatness of the power will be of God and not from ourselves; we are afflicted in every way, but not crushed; perplexed, but not despairing; persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed; always carrying about in the body the dying of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our body. For we who live are constantly being delivered over to death for Jesus’ sake, so that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our mortal flesh.

2 Corinthians 4:7-11 NASB (Emphasis mine)

We’re not home yet, and so, there’s still work to do, struggles to endure, and a bright shining home ahead. One day we will stand in the presence of our Creator and Savior. One day He will wipe the tears from our eyes. We will be a part of a “mega-church” worship like we can never imagine. We will all be changed. But for now, we trudge sod of this world, joyfully seeking the next.

Hard Life with God

Who doesn’t like to hear all the good stuff they have to gain by accepting something or making changes? Who eats healthy because it tastes better? Who exercises because it feels good? Well, that one isn’t a good example, done right it, after a while, does feel good. Still, it takes discipline to do difficult, uncomfortable, or painful things for the eventual good they produce. We know that, but for some reason, we don’t apply that to our life with God.

How would you describe the life of a disciple of Jesus? Fun? Exciting? Full of rainbows and unicorns and kittens? Someone from the outside might describe it as the path of complainers, maybe if they followed me. The life of a disciple of Jesus is hard, and it’s designed that way:

You have not yet resisted to the point of shedding blood in your striving against sin; and you have forgotten the exhortation which is addressed to you as sons, “MY SON, DO NOT REGARD LIGHTLY THE DISCIPLINE OF THE LORD,
NOR FAINT WHEN YOU ARE REPROVED BY HIM;
6 FOR THOSE WHOM THE LORD LOVES HE DISCIPLINES,
AND HE SCOURGES EVERY SON WHOM HE RECEIVES.”

Hebrews 12:4-6 NASB

The writer quotes Proverbs 3:11, 12. That chapter of Proverbs is famous for verses 5 and 6:

Trust in the LORD with all your heart
And do not lean on your own understanding.
In all your ways acknowledge Him,
And He will make your paths straight.

Proverbs 3:5-6

But verses 11 and 12 are not nearly as popular. Ironically, we find trusting God a great idea, until the discipline starts. Then we’re confused, wondering why we’re being punished. Why do bad things happen to good people? This may surprise you, and for some you will vehemently disagree, but I believe our Creator teaches us through Scripture that all things that happen to us, good and bad, come from Him.

Yes, as James says, every good and perfect gift is from our Father above (James 1:17), but he also teaches that our Father puts us through fire to develop us (James 1:12). But he also teaches us that this same Savior does not tempt us. So, the trials and temptations are different. Trials are meant to develop us, discipline us to be better disciples of Jesus. Temptations, on the other hand, come from us (James 1:13-15).

The writer of Hebrews claims that the difficulties faced by disciples of Jesus actually legitimize our relationship with our Savior (Hebrews 12:7,8). Think about that for a moment. You are legit because of difficulties, not because you don’t suffer. We suffer, and we ask, “what did we do wrong?” Instead, these very difficulties legitimize our relationship with our Savior. It’s not easy to wrap your head around.

I hate it when stuff doesn’t work, computers (especially), cars, people, business processes, departments at my employer, all sorts of things. And when they don’t, I can get pretty bent. It’s my expectation that these things do what I want, when I want, the way I want. I expect them to operate as designed, and finding the design flawed interrupts my goals, my desires, whatever I’m trying to do. You’ve been there. You know the frustration.

The truth is, these things are designed, and flawed in that design. But what I miss is that they are also part of my Master’s design, part of His plan to discipline me into a person more available to His purpose, His plans, and His Kingdom. When I miss that, I may miss an important goal He has for me. With this in mind, read Acts 16:6-10 again. You may be familiar with this passage, even how Paul was prevented and hindered by Jesus, but now think about that in terms of this concept of being disciplined by our Father in heaven.

Let’s not miss our Macedonian Vision because we’re fighting the One for whom we live and work in the first place. Let’s, instead, permit our difficulties guide us to where our Savior wants to use us, to do those things He wants us to do, and let go of our goals, asperations, dreams, and focus. That’s what the writer of Hebrews is saying, “Don’t get upset with your computer, but let that difficulty guide you to the thing our Savior wants to do in and through you at that moment.”

Scripture quotations taken from the NASB. Copyright by The Lockman Foundation